You see yourself in the mirror and know you should do something about how you look and feel. But, how to begin?

"People need to work on the easy things first," says Susan Bowerman, assistant director of University of California at Los Angeles' Center for Human Nutrition.

With so many of us launching diet and exercise plans for the new year — and often giving up within a matter of weeks (if not days) — I asked Bowerman for some strategies to get started. Strategies, that is, that aren't too hard to stick with.

It’s not incongruous to pair "good" with "indulgence." Not when you’re talking about the bloody mary at Perennial Virant: fresh, light, spiced nice, pickled vegetables garnishing. Do it with the most healthful ingredients.

When Tyler Richardson's son hit puberty, the combination of hormones and new strength from a growth spurt added an element of danger to a long history of unpredictable behavior because of autism and severe anger problems.

Doris Ranzman had followed the expert advice, planning ahead in case she wound up unable to care for herself one day. But when a nursing-home bill tops $14,000 a month, the best-laid plans get tossed aside.